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K-12 And College Completion Rates Set Records

By Dr. Marciene Mattleman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Record numbers of young adults are completing high school, going to and completing college, according to new data from the US Census Bureau.

In the "Report Roundup" section of Education Week, Caralee Adams, cites data from the Pew Research Center, noting that 90% of adults ages 25-29 have at least a high school education, 65% have completed some college and 33% now hold at least a bachelor's degree. Levels represent men, women, blacks, whites, Hispanics and foreign- and native-born Americans.

These data were compared to 1971, when close to 12% of the over 25s completed a four-year college, and 57% finished high school.

Pew authors Richard Fry and Kim Parker credit recent educational attainment in part to a sluggish job market, a result of the economic recession, with more young Americans valuing college as a way to succeed in an increasingly knowledge-based labor market.

Read more in the full report online in Pew Research Center: Social and Demographic Trends.

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